Summertime and the Living's Easy

Long time, no talk. I know, I've been extremely busy with school and interviewing and what not. Law schools are strange in that first year students (1Ls) interview roughly 5-6 months in advance for summer internships. 1Ls are allowed to start applying on December 1 and many positions have rolling deadlines. I didn't sent out resumes until late-December because I couldn't handle putting applications on top of finals, which meant that I didn't start interviewing until mid-January. That was incredibly stressful given that I heard about other law school classmates who already had offers.

Luckily once the interviews started, they didn't really stop. And then when grades came out, it was even better. I decided to stop interviewing when I got a couple of great offers and today I got the offer I was hoping for. Of course, this one offer pre-empted the three offers from New York firms and organizations so in the legal battle for Violet, it's Boston: 2; New York: 0. I'll be working for a firm here in town which means that I get to stay living with The Outdoorsman AND the benefit of getting big firm experience!

Guys, I'm almost like a grown up now!!!

Braggadocious, Y'all

Since I can't talk to my school friends about this, I'll tell y'all here. Grades came out today. I was fully anticipating a low pass in Civil Procedure -- in fact, after that exam, I went home and cried. Then there was a matter of Property, a class that was horrrrrrrrrrrrible to attend. I think I took maybe 10 pages of notes for the entire semester, altogether. I spent each class period in group GChats. I was completely out to lunch in Criminal Law because my professor was a disaster. I actually tuned in during Contracts because of my love for Liz Warren and also because I enjoyed the class. The final, however, was semi-disastrous and I was seriously concerned about my grade.

This worrying was for naught.

I passed three of my classes (Legal Writing, Criminal Law, and Civil Procedure). It's a miracle of God that I got a P in Civ Pro.

I got Honors in Property and Contracts.

I further got the Dean's Scholar award for Contracts which is for the top one or two grades in the entire section. Say whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!?! I must have logged in to the grade system a good three separate times and from different computers just to make sure that was *my* transcript I saw.

I guess I really *am* here for a reason! And, um, so much for the (often unspoken) theory that people of color are at law school without "merit".

Resolutions Revisited

Well, I didn't make a New Year's resolution because I don't think they work for me. Instead I decided to just continue in being successful in the goals I've set for myself. Much like 2 years ago when I was happy that I was ending the year smaller than I started, I was happy that I ended this past year smaller than I started. I didn't make the progress I wanted, but it made me smile when a dear friend noticed my progress at a happy hour event pre-leaving LA. But I needed to get back to the gym. I don't even want to talk about the amazing dinners I made during the holidays, but let's just say that between the gourmet dinners and decadent desserts, combined with the snow on the ground, I was not as active as I'd hoped.

I found out there's a school gym about a block from my apartment so now it's going to be my fall back if I don't use the one on campus. Now there are no excuses because instead of a 20 minute walk from home, this place is a block away. Added bonus: the gym was fairly empty because the undergrads aren't back yet, so instead of trying to package my workout into a stupid half hour time slot, I was able to take my time. That I actually manage to hang on for 45 minutes was a miracle of the iPod. Praise be to Pat Benetar, Britney Spears (Circus album), and Soulja Boy...and to fab people who have previously gifted me iTunes giftcards :)

Ooh, and I bought myself another Christmas present!



I'm trying to make sure I am maximizing my progress, so what better way to help me keep track of calories in and calories out. If it works for the Biggest Loser folks, then it could work for me (notwithstanding the whole, ya know, 8 hours of working out per day).


PS: For the gym rats, don't be assholes to the people who did make resolutions and are in the gym. Yeah, I know it sucks when you have to wait to use a machine, but if they want to make a change, you should be happy for them.

Merry Christmas to Me!

I decided to buy myself a pre-finals pick-me-up. I mean, it makes The Outdoorsman's life easier because he doesn't have to shop for me or try to keep a secret (at which he is quite terrible). I win because I get exactly what I want at a good price and I get it immediately! Of course, this was a rationalization made after I saw the email from Gilt Group saying that there was a sale on Juicy Couture that day and The Outdoorsman was still sleeping so he couldn't talk me down from the ledge.



Little Juicy Couture crown earrings. I bought another pair for my little sister for Christmas too. She's in 5th grade now and preparing to go to middle school next year. Between the Juicy tote I bought her last Christmas and the earrings this Christmas, she's going to be the coolest little 6th grader ever.




The only difference between this one and mine is that mine is in a dark beige/taupe-ish color.

Just Workin' on My Fitness

One of the things that many of my classmates have complained about is that in law school, like undergrad, they are starting to put on weight. Maybe it speaks to how sedentary the lifestyle is in LA's car culture, but I haven't had that issue. If anything, I lost a little from always walking around. Even still, I wanted to make a return to the gym. We canceled our gym membership back in LA when money was tight and I was looking forward to going back during the school year when it was "free" (and by "free" I mean, I paid $45 large for it).

Before the semester started, I made a sweet little Excel chart for my week -- on Mondays and Tuesdays when class started at 10, I'd go to the gym in the morning. On Wednesdays, I'd go after my last class. On Thursday and Friday, I'd go between classes. It was a good plan, too...until I stepped foot on campus, got into my first week of classes, and realized I'd underestimated how much time I'd need to read. I kept promising myself that once I got a handle on the reading, I'd go to the gym...next week. Then it was the week after. Then a month passed and I still hadn't gone. Then I started to psych myself out and feel intimidated -- after all, it was halfway through the semester and I was probably the only person who had never set foot in the gym. I would do some pilates at home, but then I realized that I missed doing a cardio routine.

I finally decided this week to nip it in the bud. I texted two of my school friends and told them we had an appointment at the gym after Property class. Incidentally, two was smart because one forgot her gym clothes and by the time she'd go home to get them and come back, we'd be long done. I roped another friend into going today too so there were three of us powerful women in a line on the elliptical. The elliptical is fucking intimidating. I always feel like a clumsy dork when I use it but I think I was a pretty good poseur today. I did a good half hour on the machine (stupid time limits) and felt very refreshed. And, of course, I'm proud of myself because my goal was to go today and I did it. It only gets better from here!